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The Irish woman Annie Moore was the first person processed at the famous Ellis Island immigration station after it opened in 1892. Over the following 62 years nearly 12 million emigrants were processed there but Annie embodied this immigrant experience but who was this Irish woman?

In this episode, Fin and Damian interview Megan Smolenyak, a genealogist who has written a book titled The Quest for Annie Moore of Ellis Island: Uncovering the True Story of the First Immigrant to Arrive at America's Isle of Hope. The podcast explores Annie's life in Ireland, how she rose to fame as the first emigrant to pass through Ellis Island, and how she later faded into obscurity and was misidentified until Megan began to research her story.

Megan Smolenyak is one of the best known genealogists of Irish America. She is the former Chief Family Historian and spokesperson for Ancestry.com and has appeared on programmes such Good Morning America, the Today Show, the Early Show, CNN, NPR and BBC and has consulted on shows like Who Do You Think You Are? She is the author of six books,including Hey, America, Your Roots Are Showing and Who Do You Think You Are?: The Essential Guide to Tracing Your Family History.

Check out Megan's website https://megansmolenyak.com/

For more info on Ellis Island. Ellis Island National Park Service Website

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Irish nuns are one of the enduring stereotypes of Irish emigrant communities. Thousands of Irish women joined these religious communities often erving as educators and nurses. In these roles they embedded themselves deeply in the communities they served leaving a lasting memory. In this episode, Damian and Fin interview Dr. Sophie Cooper of Queen’s University Belfast, an expert on the subject. We look at who these women were, why they joined and what life was like inside the convents where they lived

The discussion focuses on the fascinating case of Molly Dwyer, Fin’s grandaunt, who served as a nun in Dakota in the early 20th century. Molly left a vivid account of her life through a series of letters written to her brother, offering a unique window into the experiences of Irish nuns abroad.

Our guest, Dr Sophie Cooper, Queen's University Belfast has published extensively on this topic. You can find her work here—including her book Forging Identities in the Irish World: Melbourne and Chicago, c. 1830–1922 here. If you have any correspondence or stories relating to the female religious diaspora in your family, Dr. Cooper would love to hear from you!

Check out Fin’s podcast episode on his grandaunt Molly’s life as a nun here https://shows.acast.com/irishhistory/episodes/letters-from-dakota

Sound Kate Dunlea

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